as prepared fordelivery opening statement of mariel ... · throwing dinner parties in fancy homes....

AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY

Opening Statement of Marie L.Yovanovitch to theHouse of Representatives Permanent Select Committee on

Intelligence

November 15,2019

Mr.Chairman, RankingMember Nunes,and other Membersof the Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to start with thisstatement, to reintroduce myself to the Committee and tohighlight parts of my biography and experience.

My Background

I come before you as an American citizen, who has devotedthe majority of my life,33 years, to service to the country that allof us love. Like my colleagues, I entered the Foreign Serviceunderstanding that my job was to implement the foreign policyinterests of this nation, as defined by the President and Congress,and to do so regardless of which person or party was in power. Ihadno agenda other than to pursue our stated foreign policy goals.

My service is an expression of gratitude for all that thiscountry has given my family and me. My late parents did nothave the good fortune to come of age in a free society. My fatherfled the Soviets before ultimately finding refuge in the UnitedStates. My mother’s family escaped the USSR after theBolshevik revolution,and she grew up stateless inNaziGermany,before eventually making her way to the United States. Theirpersonal histories—my personal history—gave me both deep

gratitude towards the United States and great empathy forothers—like the Ukrainian people—who want to be free.

I joined the Foreign Service during the ReaganAdministration and subsequently served three other RepublicanPresidents, as well as two Democratic Presidents. Itwas my greathonor to be appointed to serve as an ambassador three times—twice by President George W. Bush and once by President BarackObama.

There is a perception that diplomats lead a comfortable lifethrowing dinner parties in fancy homes. Let me tell you aboutsome of my reality. It has not always been easy. I have moved 13times and served in seven different countries, five of themhardship posts.

My first tour was Mogadishu, Somalia, an increasinglydangerous place, as that country’s civil war kept grinding on andthe government was weakening. The military took over policingfunctions in a particularly brutal way and many basic servicesdisappeared.

Several years later, after the Soviet Union collapsed, I helpedopen our Embassy in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. As we wereestablishing relations with a new country, our small Embassy wasattacked by a gunman, who sprayed the Embassy building withgunfire.

I later served in Moscow. In 1993, during the attemptedcoup in Russia, I was caught in crossfire between presidential andparliamentary forces. It took us three tries—me without a helmetor body armor—to get into a vehicle to go to the Embassy. We

Statementof MarieL.Yovanovitch— Page2

went to the Embassy, because the Ambassador asked us to come.We went, because it was our duty.

My Service inUkraine

From August 2016 until May 2019, I served as the U.S.Ambassador to Ukraine. During my tenure in Ukraine, I went tothe Front Line approximately ten times during a shooting war: toshow the American flag, to hear what was going on (sometimesliterally as we heard the impact of artillery), and to see how ourassistance dollars were being put to use.

I worked to advance U.S. policy—fully embraced byDemocrats and Republicans alike—to help Ukraine become astable and independent democratic state, with a market economyintegrated into Europe. A secure, democratic, and free Ukraineserves not just the Ukrainian people, but the American people aswell. That’s why it was our policy to help the Ukrainians achievetheir objectives—they matched our objectives.

The War Against Russia

The U.S. is the most powerful country in the history of theworld, in large part because of our values. And our values havemade possible the network of alliances and partnerships thatbuttresses our own strength. Ukraine, with an enormouslandmass and a large population, has the potential to be asignificant commercial and political partner for the U.S., as wellas a force-multiplier on the security side.

We see the potential in Ukraine. Russia, by contrast, seesthe risk. The history is not written yet, but Ukraine could move


out of Russia’s orbit. And now Ukraine is a battleground for greatpower competition, with a hot war for the control of territory anda hybrid war to control Ukraine’s leadership. The U.S. hasprovided significant security assistance since the onset of the waragainst Russia in 2014. And as is well-known, the Trumpadministration strengthened our policy by approving theprovision to Ukraine of anti-tank missiles known as Javelins.

Supporting Ukraine is the right thing to do. It is also thesmart thing to do. If Russia prevails and Ukraine falls to Russiandominion, we can expect to see other attempts by Russia toexpand its territory and influence.

The War Against Corruption

As critical as the war against Russia is, Ukraine’s strugglingdemocracy has an equally important challenge: Battling theSoviet legacy of corruption, which has pervaded Ukraine’sgovernment. Corruption makes Ukraine’s leaders ever vulnerableto Russia, and the Ukrainian people understand that. That’s whythey launched the Revolution of Dignity in 2014 demanding to bea part of Europe, demanding the transformation of the system,demanding to live under the rule of law. Ukrainians wanted thelaw to apply equally to all persons, whether the individual inquestion is the president or any other citizen. It was a question offairness, of dignity.

Here, again, there is a coincidence of interests. Corruptleaders are inherently less trustworthy, while an honest andaccountable Ukrainian leadership makes a U.S.-Ukrainianpartnership more reliable and more valuable to the United States.


A level playing field in this strategically-located countrybordering four NATO allies, creates an environment in whichU.S. business can more easily trade, invest, and profit.Corruption is also a security issue, because corrupt officials arevulnerable to Moscow. In short, it is in America’s nationalsecurity interest to help Ukraine transform into a country wherethe rule of law governs and corruption is held incheck. Itwas—and remains—a top U.S.priority to help Ukraine fight corruption.Significant progress has been made since the 2014 RevolutionofDignity.

Unfortunately,as the past couple of months have underlined,not all Ukrainians embraced our anti-corruption work. Thus,perhaps, it was not surprising, that when our anti-corruptionefforts got in the way of a desire for profit or power, Ukrainianswho preferred to play by the old, corrupt rules sought to removeme. What continues to amaze me is that they found Americanswilling to partner with them and, working together, theyapparently succeeded in orchestrating the removal of a U.S.Ambassador.

How could our system fail like this? How is it that foreigncorrupt interests could manipulate our government?

Which country’s interests are served when the very corruptbehavior we have been criticizing is allowed to prevail? Suchconduct undermines the U.S.,exposes our friends, andwidens theplaying field for autocrats like President Putin. Our leadershipdepends on the power of our example and the consistency of ourpurpose. Both have now been opened to question.


Addressing Specific Concerns

With that backgroundinmind,I would likebriefly to addresssome of the factual issues I expect you may want to ask meabout,starting with my timeline in Ukraine and the events about whichI do and do not have first-hand knowledge.

Events Before and After I Served inUkraine

I arrived in Ukraine on August 22, 2016 and left Ukrainepermanently on May 20, 2019. There are a number of events youare investigating to which I cannot bring any first-handknowledge. The events that pre-dated my Ukraine serviceinclude:

• the release of the so-called “Black Ledger” and Mr.Manafort’s subsequent resignation from President Trump’scampaign; and

• the departure from office of former Prosecutor GeneralViktor Shokin.

Several other events occurred after I returned from Ukraine.These include:

• President Trump’s July 25, 2019 call with PresidentZelenskiy;

• The discussions surrounding that phone call; and

• Any discussions surrounding the delay of security assistanceto Ukraine inSummer 2019.

Statementof MarieL.Yovanovitch—

During my Tenure inUkraine

As for events during my tenure inUkraine:

• I want to reiterate first that the allegation that I disseminateda “Do Not Prosecute” list was a fabrication. Mr.Lutsenko,the former Ukrainian Prosecutor General who made thatallegation, has acknowledged that the list never existed.

• I did not tell Mr.Lutsenko or other Ukrainian officials whothey should or should not prosecute. Instead,I advocated theU.S. position that rule of law should prevail and Ukrainianlaw enforcement, prosecutors, and judges should stopwielding their power selectively, as a political weaponagainst their adversaries, and start dealing with allconsistently and according to the law.

• Also untrue are unsourced allegations that I told unidentifiedEmbassy employees or Ukrainian officials that PresidentTrump’s orders should be ignored because “he was going tobe impeached”—or for any other reason. I didnot andwouldnot say such a thing. Such statements would be inconsistentwith my training as a Foreign Service Officer and my role asan Ambassador.

• The Obama administration didnot ask me to help the Clintoncampaign or harm the Trump campaign, nor would I havetaken any such steps if they had. Partisanship of this type isnot compatible with the role of a career Foreign ServiceOfficer.


• I have never met Hunter Biden,nor have I had any direct orindirect conversations with him. And although I have metformer Vice President Biden several times over the courseof our many years ingovernment,neither he nor the previousAdministration ever raised the issue of either Burisma orHunter Bidenwith me.

• With respect to Mayor Giuliani, I have had only minimalcontacts with him—a total of three. None related to theevents at issue. I do not understand Mr.Giuliani’s motivesfor attacking me, nor can I offer an opinion on whether hebelieved the allegations he spread about me. Clearly,no oneat the State Department did. What I can say is that Mr.Giuliani should have known those claims were suspect,coming as they reportedly did from individuals withquestionable motives and with reason to believe that theirpolitical and financial ambitions would be stymied by ouranti-corruption policy inUkraine.

My Departure from Ukraine

After being asked by the Under Secretary of State forPolitical Affairs in early March 2019 to extend my tour until2020, the smear campaign against me entered a new public phasein the United States. In the wake of the negative press, StateDepartment officials suggested an earlier departure, and weagreed upon July 2019. I was then abruptly told just weeks later,in late April, to come back to Washington from Ukraine “on thenext plane.” At the time I departed, Ukraine had just concludedgame-changing presidential elections. It was a sensitive period


with much at stake for the U.S. and called for all the experienceand expertise we could muster.

When I returned to the United States, Deputy Secretary ofState Sullivan told me there had been a concerted campaignagainst me, that the President no longer wished me to serve asAmbassador to Ukraine, and that in fact, the President had beenpushing for my removal since the prior summer. As Mr.Sullivanrecently recounted during his Senate confirmation hearing,neither he nor anyone else ever explained or sought to justify thePresident’s concerns about me,nor did anyone in the Departmentjustify my early departure by suggesting I had done somethingwrong. I appreciate that Mr. Sullivan publicly affirmed at hishearing that I had served “capably and admirably.”

Although, then and now, I have always understood that Iserved at the pleasure of the President, I still find it difficult tocomprehend that foreign and private interests were able toundermine U.S.interests inthis way. Individuals,who apparentlyfelt stymied by our efforts to promote stated U.S. policy againstcorruption—that is, to do the mission—were able to successfullyconduct a campaign of disinformation against a sittingAmbassador, using unofficial back channels. As variouswitnesses have recounted, they shared baseless allegations withthe President and convinced him to remove his Ambassador,despite the fact that the State Department fully understood thatthe allegations were false and the sources highly suspect.

These events should concern everyone in this room.Ambassadors are the symbol of the United States abroad, thepersonal representatives of the President. They should always act


and speak with full authority to advocate for U.S. policies. If ourchief representative is kneecapped, it limits our effectiveness tosafeguard the vital national security interests of the United States.This is especially important now, when the internationallandscape is more complicated and more competitive than it hasbeen since the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Our Ukraine policy has been thrown into disarray, and shadyinterests the world over have learned how little it takes to removean American Ambassador who does not give them what theywant. After these events, what foreign official, corrupt or not,could be blamed for wondering whether the Ambassadorrepresents the President’s views? And what U.S. Ambassadorcould be blamed for harboring the fear that they cannot count onour government to support them as they implement stated U.S.policy and defend U.S. interests?

*******

I would like to comment on one other matter before takingyour questions. At the closed deposition, I expressed graveconcerns about the degradation of the Foreign Service over thepast few years and the failure of State Department leadership topush back as foreign and corrupt interests apparently hijacked ourUkraine policy. I remain disappointed that the Department’sleadership and others have declined to acknowledge that theattacks against me and others are dangerously wrong.

This is about far more than me or a couple of individuals. AsForeign Service professionals are being denigrated andundermined, the institution is also being degraded. This will soon


cause real harm, if it hasn’t already. The State Department as atool of foreign policy often doesn’t get the same attention andrespect as the military might of the Pentagon does, but we are—as they say—“the pointy end of the spear.” If we lose our edge,the U.S.will inevitably have to use other tools, even more oftenthan it does today. And those other tools are blunter, moreexpensive, and not universally effective.

Moreover, the attacks are leading to a crisis in the StateDepartment as the policy process is visibly unravelling,leadership vacancies go unfilled,and senior and midlevel officersponder an uncertain future and head for the doors. The crisis hasmoved from the impact on individuals to an impact on theinstitution. The State Department is being hollowed out fromwithin at a competitive and complex time on the world stage. Thisis not a time to undercut our diplomats.

It is the responsibility of the Department’s leaders to standup for the institutionand the individualswho make that institutionthe most effective diplomatic force in the world. And Congresshas a responsibility to reinvest in our diplomacy. That’s aninvestment inour national security, an investment in our future.

As I close, let me be clear on who we are and how we servethis country. We are professionals, public servants who byvocation and training pursue the policies of the President,regardless of who holds that office or what party they affiliatewith. We handle American Citizen Services, facilitate trade andcommerce, work security issues,represent the U.S.,and report toand advise Washington, to mention just a few of our functions.


And we make a difference every day.

We are people who repeatedly uproot our lives, who risk—and sometimes give—our lives for this country.

We are the fifty-two Americans who forty years ago thismonth began 444 days of deprivation, torture and captivity inTeheran.

We are the dozens of Americans stationed at our embassy inCuba and consulates in China, who mysteriously anddangerously—and in some cases perhaps permanently—wereinjured inattacks from unknownsources several years ago.

And we are Ambassador Chris Stevens, Sean Patrick Smith,Ty Woods, and Glen Doherty—people rightly called heroes fortheir ultimate sacrifice to this nation’s foreign policy interests inLibya,eight years ago.

We honor these individuals. They represent each one of youhere—and every American. These courageous individuals wereattacked because they symbolized America.

What you need to know,what the American people need toknow, is that while, thankfully, most of us answer the call to dutyin less dramatic ways, every Foreign Service Officer runs thesesame risks. And, very often, so do our families. They serve too.As individuals, as a community, we answer the call to duty toadvance and protect the interests of the United States.

We take our oath of office seriously,the same oath that eachone of you take, “to support and defend the Constitution of the


United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic” and to“bear true faith and allegiance to the same.”

I count myself lucky to be a Foreign Service Officer,fortunate to serve with the best America has to offer, blessed toserve the American people for the last 33 years.

Thank you for your attention. I welcome your questions.


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